take me

There is a general misconception in this place where I live.

I had an inkling of an idea that there was this type of a misconception, but I had no idea how bad it was until I experienced it.

I was at work one day, and it was time for lunch. Now, the night before, I had been reading a particularly good book, and it was keeping me too much in suspense, trying to get to the ending and figure out the whodunnit. So that day, I decided to take my novel out with me to complete the book, since my colleagues were busy and could not have lunch with me.

As I was walking out, book in hand, I bumped into my colleague who was walking out for lunch. We decided to walk out together.

While walking out, she glanced at what I was holding, and asked me why I was reading a book. I said I wanted to get to the end of it as it was a good book. Her next sentence shocked me into realising the misconception.

She asked me why I was reading a 'storybook', then she said I was too old to be reading storybooks. What she said was that I was old enough and mature enough, why was I still reading books? And a 'storybook' at that.

After we parted ways, I glanced down at the book I was holding because I thought the cover was kiddish. But the cover wasn't even kiddy-looking. It was just a normal adult crime fiction novel by a particularly good female author.

That was when I realised just how bad the general misconception in this place is.

See, the thing is that here, this place is very business-developed. Almost everyone has a business mind, and things here run very efficiently because it is a business place. But what suffers when business flourishes, is arts. Arts, basically music and novels.

Music and novels suffer where business flourishes.

The general misconception is that adults should be old enough and should be out there putting their asses on the line, working and getting stressed and looking all stressed out and earning money every single day. If not, they should be out looking for husbands or wives, taking care of kids, shopping, watching a movie, buying a house, just anything but reading novels.

So I was considered a kid, and I was considered childish because I was reading a novel.

Perhaps childish is too strong a word. Well, just.. not 'right', in their concept.

Because this place is so developed financially, because it is the financial and business hub of Asia, apparently reading novels isn't a thing to do. Working like hell, getting stressed, retraining and learning new skills should be the thing to do, I suppose.

That is just my opinion.

I do think, though, that by reading, I am learning a new skill. I am learning to write better and better, I am learning new descriptive and narrative ways, and most of all, learning new vocabulary words. Ain't that learning too?

I don't know, but what I do know is that the general misconception here is kinda warped. Too overboard.

On another note, I am helping my woman get a job here. Applying for her, writing resumes for her, yes, I am. The recession now makes it hard, but oh, I am positive. I still am positive. We both are.

Because, for once, for the first time, we are working as a team to achieve something that we both want. We are a team and it feels good to be a team. I love being a team with her.

And we are both still staying positive.

Because, after all, if we want something badly enough, the universe will conspire with us to get it.

So, she will get a job here soon, and come here to be with me, live and work here and just be with me, very very soon. :)